Product Description The culinary bounty of Florence, Rome, and Venice--Italy's most visited cities--is more affordable than ever to travelers using this handy volume. Includes twelve original maps.
Amazon.com Review If you're planning on visiting Florence, Venice, or Rome on your next trip to Italy, Cheap Eats in Italy could be your best friend. Author Sandra A. Gustafson starts off by initiating readers into the ins and outs of eating cheaply in Italy. (Rule number one: eat standing up when possible--breakfast or lunch at the bar can be as much as 50 percent cheaper than sitting at a table.) She clues you in on Italian fast-food joints such as rosticceries and cafes that offer tavola calda (hot table) where the food is plentiful, good, and inexpensive, and she explains the ground rules of dining in an Italian restaurant. ("If the waiter does not bring Parmesan cheese, it probably does not go with what you're eating. Parmesan is never used on pasta with fish or with lots of garlic, but it is offered with many types of soup;" and "Coffee is served after a meal, never with it.")
General information in the sections devoted to each city gives way to specific details about the restaurants listed. Gustafson provides a thorough review of each restaurant that covers specialties of the house, ambience, and what to look forward to--or avoid. (Concerning desserts at the otherwise highly-recommended Il Vegetariano in Florence, Gustafson writes: "Desserts are in the lead-ball category. I recommend skipping them.") With Cheap Eats in Italy you'll know what you're getting before you get it.
Customer Reviews:
This is the ONLY book you need to find great eats in Italy February 12, 2001 4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Sandra Gustafson's book is absolutely essential if you are not interested in paying overpriced tourist food when you visit Rome, Florence and/or Venice. Like the title, this book covers restaurants in Florence, Rome and Venice. In each city, restaurants are further divided into several city zones. There are maps to each city zone with numbers corresonding restaurants indicated on the map. They are not the most detailed map but good starting point, nevertheless. I have noticed a few mistakes on the map such as the numbers are placed on the wrong side of the street or mistakenly placed on the next street over. It is best to cross reference this book's map either with your hotel or with a different map.
There is a quick reference section next to each restaurant that display vital information: credit card, reservation, cover charge, hours and etc. She also writes a short and personal comments for each restaurant, indicating the history, owner and sometimes what to order. One important note,
I think the real strength of this book is in Rome. It almost never failed me. I had experienced with this book that would have been impossible to find unless you are a native to the city or know someone there. Most of the restaurants have English speaking staff, especially when in Rome. There are a few ( these tend to be the best!) places that doesn't so have your Italian Phrase book handy!
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